AT&T Tops J.D. Power Purchase Experience Survey

Earlier this month, J.D. Power released the results of its "2013 U.S. Wireless Customer Care Full-Service Performance" study. The report showed that AT&T ranks number one among top U.S. mobile providers when it comes to customer service satisfaction.

Today, J.D. Power released the results of its "2013 Wireless Purchase Experience" Study. The survey looks at and rates the experiences customers have when purchasing phones and mobile plans online, in stores, or over the phone. The results are, unsurprisingly, similar to those seen in the customer service survey.

AT&T top the survey's list of major U.S. mobile providers when it comes to purchase experience, a first for the company. AT&T scored 798 on J.D. Power's 1,000-point rating scale, beating Verizon by just four points. Sprint was third on the list (but closer to Verizon than on the customer service rankings) with a 793. T-Mobile brought up the rear, again, with a comparatively dismal 784.

Overall, customer satisfaction with mobile sales is on the rise. The rating for all carriers by customers who completed sales transactions recently now stands at 795, a 31-point increase from the same rating just six months ago. As with the customer service survey, consumers pointed to better online chat as a reason for their greater satisfaction, with faster, easier-to-use websites also contributing.

"There's a direct correlation between an efficient sales transaction process and improving satisfaction with the overall purchase experience," said Kirk Parsons, senior director of the Telecom services division at J.D. Power. "The increased levels of satisfaction with website are partially due to the efficiency and immediacy of the experience driven by increasingly innovative online chat functions. Additionally, carriers have invested heavily in promoting and marketing the latest 4G devices to keep current customers loyal and encourage spending on more advanced services."